PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Sam Skaller, Senior Campus Coordinator at New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, on Comprehensive Sex Education
3:10:33
·
175 sec
Sam Skaller, representing the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, testified in support of Resolution 94, emphasizing the critical importance of comprehensive sex education as a form of sexual violence prevention. Skaller highlighted the high rates of sexual assault among college students and the lack of proper sex education before they reach campus.
- Stressed that comprehensive sex education is not just health education, but a crucial tool for preventing sexual violence
- Shared statistics on sexual assault rates among college students in New York State
- Emphasized the urgent need for comprehensive sex education in light of current political and social challenges, including the rise of cyber sexual violence and anti-trans rhetoric
Sam Skaller
3:10:33
Good afternoon.
3:10:35
Thank you so much for convening this very important hearing on Resolution 94.
3:10:40
My name is Sam Schaller.
3:10:41
I use shethey pronouns, and I'm the senior campus coordinator at the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault.
3:10:47
I'm also a certified sexuality educator with the Sexual Health Alliance.
3:10:51
The mission of the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault is to prevent sexual violence and reduce the harm it causes through public education, prevention programming, advocacy for survivors, and the pursuit of legal and policy changes.
3:11:04
In doing so, the alliance works to disrupt systems and institutions that unfortunately can re traumatize survivors when they most need our support.
3:11:12
I am here to stress that comprehensive sex education is not just medically accurate health education, it is sexual violence prevention.
3:11:20
Studies show that comprehensive sex education is one of the strongest forms of primary sexual violence prevention for youth.
3:11:27
For the past decade, I have worked with tens of thousands of college and university students, 13% of whom experienced sexual assault each academic year.
3:11:37
A devastating reality compounded by the fact that the majority of these students have already faced sexual violence before even stepping foot on campus.
3:11:46
Last academic year alone, out of New York State's 1,100,000 undergraduate and graduate student population, approximately a 148,000 students endured sexual assault.
3:11:58
This staggering figure does not even account for the others subjected to verbal and digital forms of sexual violence that are currently on the rise.
3:12:06
Year after year, I've encountered 3rd year law students struggling to define affirmative consent, 1st year CUNY students unsure if they have the right to say no to sex, and thousands of disclosures of sexual violence in all of its forms.
3:12:19
While campus sexual violence prevention education is critically important, it's like treating the symptoms of an illness without addressing the root cause, a systematic failure to provide comprehensive sexuality education before students arrive on campus.
3:12:34
This failure leaves millions of New York students unprepared and vulnerable, setting them up for very preventable harm.
3:12:41
Amid a troubling political landscape where accused perpetrators of sexual violence hold positions of power, CUNY is shutting down gender justice centers all across the city.
3:12:50
Cyber sexual violence is on the rise, and anti trans rhetoric is surging nationally.
3:12:55
In this climate, the need for comprehensive sex education has never been more urgent.
3:13:00
Requiring silent scientifically accurate inclusive comprehensive sex ed can significantly reduce rates of sexual harm and set young people up for success in making informed and empowered decisions about their bodies.
3:13:11
If New York is truly committed to supporting sexual assault survivors, it must take decisive action to prevent sexual violence from occurring in the first place.
3:13:20
Passing this bill to make comprehensive sexuality education mandatory across the state is a critical step in that effort.
3:13:27
Thank you so much for your time today.
